The Nature of C—H Hydrogen Bonding

Abstract

The question of just what a hydrogen bond is is one which has proven elusive for more than half a century since Latimer and Rodebush’s well-known paper of 1920. While it was realised even then that certain groups containing hydrogen atoms show a propensity for forming weak bonds with electron-rich groups on the same or another molecule, the mechanism of formation of this bond has proven to be a considerable challenge.